Open palm hand covers and uses of said covers

Abstract

According to the various features characteristics and embodiments of the present invention which will become apparent as the description thereof proceeds, the present invention provides partial hand covers and the use of said covers, intended to increase the overall performance in sports activities. More specifically, the present invention offers strategic openings in select areas of the palm, creating substantial and significant advantages for the user, in playing the sports of football, golf and basketball.

I claim: 
     
       1. A basketball glove comprising: a partial palmless glove, said partial palmless glove having a palmar portion that is adapted to overlay a palm of a user's hand, said glove having one opening extending in a middle of the palmar portion of the glove and is adapted to expose a user's palm to touch a basketball when the glove is worn;
 wherein said one opening is the only opening along the glove palmar portion; 
 wherein said one opening has a diamond shape having an upper first edge, an upper second edge, a lower first edge and a lower second edge; 
 said lower second edge adapted to abut but not expose a thumb bulge of the user's palm; 
 wherein said one opening upper first edge and said upper second edge are adapted to not expose any portion of a palmar digital crease area of the user's hand. 
 
     
     
       2. The basketball glove as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein
 said glove is absent of any digital segments thereby completely exposing a thumb, forefinger, middle finger, ring finger and pinkie finger of the wearer's hand when the glove is worn. 
 
     
     
       3. The basketball glove as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said glove palmar portion comprises of a grip enhancing means that is adapted to overlay a metacarpophalangeal joint of the user's forefinger, a metacarpophalangeal joint of the user's ring finger, and a metacarpophalangeal joint of the user's pinkie finger when the glove is worn; and,
 wherein said grip enhancing means is configured to create a higher coefficient of friction than a surrounding glove body material forming the glove body palmar portion. 
 
     
     
       4. The basketball glove as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said glove further comprises of a dorsal portion that is adapted to overlay a back of the user's hand, said glove dorsal and palmar portions each having distal and proximal ends;
 wherein said basketball glove having distal ends such that the user's thumb, forefinger, middle finger, ring finger and pinkie finger are each exposed and uncovered by the glove; and, 
 wherein said glove body palmar and dorsal portions each having a hypothenar eminence section that is adapted to overlay a hypothenar eminence of the user's hand when the glove is worn. 
 
     
     
       5. The basketball glove as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said glove further comprises a grip-enhancing means that is positioned along a top portion of the glove palmar portion and is adapted to increase grip along said top portion, thereby allowing the user to better control a basketball when the glove is worn by increasing grip along said top portion as compared to the surrounding palmar portion;
 said grip enhancing means comprising of a plurality of projections configured to create a higher coefficient than a surrounding glove body material forming the glove palmar portion. 
 
     
     
       6. The basketball glove as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said glove palmar portion has a thumb bulge portion that is configured to overlay a thumb bulge of the user's hand. 
     
     
       7. The basketball glove as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said one opening is the only opening on the glove palmar portion overlaying the user's palm; and
 wherein said palmar portion further comprises a grip enhancing means consisting of a plurality of depressions. 
 
     
     
       8. The basketball glove as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said glove palmar portion has a top portion;
 said top portion comprising of a grip-enhancing means that is configured to create a higher coefficient of friction than a surrounding glove palmar portion, thereby increasing the grip capabilities of the user along said palmar top portion when the glove is worn; and, 
 wherein said basketball glove further comprises a glove body having a dorsal portion adapted to overlay a back of the user's hand; 
 said glove dorsal and palmar portions comprising distal and proximal ends with a plurality of digital segments projecting from said distal ends, 
 wherein the proximal ends of the glove dorsal and palmar portions collectively define a glove body proximal end, and the distal ends of the glove dorsal and palmar portions collectively define a glove body distal end; 
 wherein said basketball glove distal ends are adapted to expose and uncover the user's thumb, forefinger, middle finger, ring finger and pinkie finger when the glove is worn. 
 
     
     
       9. The basketball glove as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said glove palmar portion has a top portion;
 said top portion comprising of a grip-enhancing means that is adapted to create a higher coefficient of friction than a surrounding glove palmar portion, thereby increasing the grip capabilities of the user along said palmar top portion when the glove is worn; 
 wherein said grip-enhancing means consists of PVC dots. 
 
     
     
       10. The basketball glove as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said one opening is positioned such that said diamond shape opening is widest in a middle of the opening and is narrowest at a north and a south endpoint. 
     
     
       11. A sports glove to assist a user to shoot a basketball properly, comprising
 a partial palmless glove, said partial palmless glove having a palmar portion for overlaying an entire palm of the user's hand, said glove having one opening extending across a middle area of the palm of the user's hand and adapted to extend in said middle area of the palmar portion of the glove thereby exposing the entire middle of the user's palm; 
 said palm one opening having a size to expose a user's palm to touch the basketball when the glove is worn; 
 wherein said one opening is the only opening along the glove palmar portion of substantial size to enable the skin of the user's exposed palm to touch the basketball; 
 wherein said one opening has a diamond shape with a upper first edge, a upper second edge, a lower first edge and a lower second edge; 
 said lower second edge is adapted to abut but not expose a thumb bulge of the user's palm; 
 wherein said one opening upper first edge and said upper second edge do not expose any portion of a palmar digital crease area of the user's hand when the glove is worn; and, 
 wherein said glove palmar portion is adapted to overlay a thumb metacarpophalangeal joint, a forefinger metacarpophalangeal joint, a ring finger metacarpophalangeal joint, and a pinkie finger metacarpophalangeal joint when the glove is worn; 
 wherein said one opening is positioned along the palmar portion such that said opening extends to leave exposed only a shooter's gap region of the user's palm, and thereby allowing the user to focus attention on maintaining the shooter's gap region from touching the basketball while shooting the basketball, and providing instant feedback if said shooter's gap is breached by the basketball touching an exposed palm portion when the glove is worn. 
 
     
     
       12. The sports glove as claimed in  claim 11 , wherein said glove palmar top portion comprises of a grip-enhancing means that creates a higher coefficient of friction than a surrounding glove palmar portion, thereby increasing the grip capabilities of the user along said palmar top portion when the glove is worn;
 wherein said grip enhancing means does not extend beyond said glove palmar top portion such that the remaining palmar portion is free of said grip enhancing means. 
 
     
     
       13. The sports glove as claimed in  claim 11 , wherein said glove having open distal ends adapted to entirely expose and uncover the user's thumb, forefinger, middle finger, and ring finger are each entirely exposed and uncovered by the glove when the glove is worn. 
     
     
       14. The sports glove as claimed in  claim 11 , wherein said basketball glove palmar top portion further comprises of a grip-enhancing means;
 wherein said grip-enhancing means is adapted to increase a grip along metacarpophalangeal joints of the user's palm when gripping a basketball with the shooting hand using a preferred shooting grip; 
 wherein said grip enhancing means is adapted to create a higher coefficient of friction than a surrounding glove palmar portion material. 
 
     
     
       15. The use of the sports glove as claimed in  claim 11  in the sport of basketball. 
     
     
       16. The sports glove as claimed in  claim 11 , wherein said one opening is on the middle area of the palm area of the glove; and
 wherein said one opening second lower edge follows a thumb bulge crease of the user's hand when the glove is worn; and 
 wherein said sports glove has open distal ends such that the user's thumb, ring finger, forefinger, middle finger, and pinkie finger are each exposed by the glove when the glove is worn; and 
 glove palmar top portion comprises of a grip-enhancing means consisting of a plurality of projections; 
 plurality of projections being configured to create a higher coefficient of friction than a surrounding glove palmar portion, thereby increasing the grip capabilities of the user along said palmar portion when the glove is worn; 
 wherein said grip enhancing means does not extend beyond said glove palmar top portion such that the remaining palmar portion is free of said grip enhancing means; 
 wherein said opening extends to leave exposed only the middle of the user's palm defining a basketball shooter's gap region, and thereby allowing a user to focus attention on maintaining a shooter's gap region while shooting the basketball, and providing immediate feedback if the shooter's gap region is breached by allowing said basketball to touch the exposed shooter's gap region of the user's palm when the glove is worn.